The only sun in Huayu

Chapter 5 is well-reasoned and supported by evidence.
The leader in charge of marketing couldn't stand it anymore.

I basically understand everything. Shen Shandeng is not old, but he has a big mouth and is very boastful.

No matter how talented you are, you can't do this!

"Comrade Xiao Shen, last year, our total box office revenue for the whole year was less than 3 billion. Do you know what 1 billion means?"

Han Sanping added, "It should be around 26 billion. The first place is 'Curse of the Golden Flower,' and the second place is 'The Banquet.'"

Han Sanping's secretary also chimed in, "Ten billion, that's more than a third of the Chinese film market."

Zhou Qifeng wanted to find a sand dune and bury his head in it.

With just a few casual words, the pressure was palpable, and Zhou Qifeng felt a little frightened.

These are all big shots!

These people, once released, will definitely become big shots in the Chinese film market.

Don't underestimate them; they are all in front of Han Sanping.

The fact that they were all easy to talk to showed that Han Sanping appreciated Shen Shandeng.

Especially after "Ode to the Ming Dynasty," Han Sanping's evaluation was too high, and he talked too much about it, even a bit too much.

Zhou Qifeng glanced at Shen Shandeng out of the corner of his eye and gasped.

Faced with the questioning, Shen Shandeng spoke calmly and slowly.

"First of all, my film is a period epic with a solid foundation, a thoroughly historical epic."

"Judging from the box office trend, 'Curse of the Golden Flower' probably won't reach 300 million, but it's close."

"When 'Brotherhood of Blades II: The Sun Rises' is released, it won't be difficult for it to gross three times more than 'Curse of the Golden Flower,' which would be 900 million."

"Sigh, it's less than a billion, but it's close to a billion."

From this perspective, Shen Shandeng felt a little regretful and sighed.

Everyone was speechless!

What the hell!

That's quite a boast!

That's such a show-off!

People from Shandong shouldn't be like this! Where's your honest and kind nature?
Shen Shandeng remained calm and composed, speaking eloquently.

"Brotherhood of Blades II: The Sun and Moon Reborn has many highlights in its plot; I'll point out a few important ones."

"The first one, which runs throughout the entire story, is the growth of the three main characters. I will film it in a very exciting way, capturing the exhilarating feeling of overcoming class barriers and following Zhu Yuanzhang to establish a career."

“If this one point is filmed well, it’s no worse than ‘Curse of the Golden Flower.’ What is ‘Curse of the Golden Flower’? It seems to have a star-studded cast, but the plot is terrible, and it’s adapted from ‘Thunderstorm’.”

Han Sanping told him to speak properly: "Can you stop belittling others? You're even belittling 'Thunderstorm'?"

"I'm sorry." Shen Shandeng admitted his mistake, and then said, "Thunderstorm is certainly great, and it is a classic in terms of story structure, but Curse of the Golden Flower is still a Western-style story."

"These sensational ethical stories subtly cater to outdated stereotypes, and the result? A disastrous box office failure overseas."

Shen Shandeng sneered.

The marketing manager countered, "In the past two years, Hollywood has also grown tired of epic blockbusters. If they're not interested in ancient European history, how could they possibly be interested in Chinese epics?"

Shen Shandeng said, "We are not an epic; we are real history, but a fictional story made by the director."

"Secondly, I think that statement is too lenient. The closed nature of the American television industry shows that the United States is not interested in us, or even in anything outside the United States."

"As for the old Europe, they keep colluding with our six generations of directors, investing in us with various funds to make movies that involve cursing, and they also support art-house cinemas. It's clear they don't want our culture to spread."

“With absolutely no interest in it, from 00 to 05, the Hollywood market opened its doors wide to us.”

"And coincidentally, with our entry into the WTO market, they have made film a primary requirement of theirs, even placing it on par with important sectors such as finance, insurance, and banking."

Everyone was shocked again.

Shen Shandeng has completely overturned the entire lineage of the Six Generations.

Han Sanping was quite interested. Shen Shandeng was arrogant, but some of his ideas suited his taste.

To put it bluntly, the film industry may not be very large in terms of market size, but it is very important in terms of influence, and even in terms of cultural security and ideology.

Han Sanping added: "Actually, period dramas sell well overseas. When 'Hero' was released in the European and American markets, especially in the United States, it was not a revenue-sharing deal, but a buyout, and the price was not high."

Shen Shandeng was shocked: "So, in other words, our period dramas, which are based on Western themes, were never this profitable from the start?"

"This is... a bit too cheap."

Everyone gasped.

This completely condemns all five generations of directors.

Young man, don't be so hot-blooded!
"Be careful with your words, and respect your seniors." Han Sanping gave Shen Shandeng a slight nod and agreed, "The United States is very good at using its market advantages. If a film is successful in the United States, it will receive attention all over the world."

“The United States has very strict cultural control, and coupled with its market advantages, films from other countries that want to enter the US market have to accept the demanding requirement of buying out the copyright at a low price.”

“Producers are often inclined to agree because as long as they make a name for themselves in the United States, they can earn it back in other markets.”

"The lukewarm reception of period dramas is also related to our desire for revenue sharing."

Shen Shandeng was stunned!
In his later life, he read a news report saying that films from other countries would be charged very high agency fees for screening in China. The reason was that the Chinese market was large, so they demanded more.

This is also why some foreign films, such as Japanese anime films, are not released in China—they are priced too high.

Co-authored.

When the domestic film market is large, you have to offer high-priced agency rights to others.

However, when domestic films want to enter foreign markets, they have to be sold at low prices.

It's all a loss anyway!

They have absolutely no pricing power!
When there is no market, there is no pricing power.

They have a market, but no pricing power.

Shen Shandeng was stunned.

Something's not quite right in this industry!

Han Sanping urged him to continue, "You haven't finished yet. What gives you your confidence to break 1 billion at the box office?"

Shen Shandeng recalled that he had just mentioned that the first plot point was worth 300 million.

"The second major plot involves Xu Da and Chang Yuchun's northern expedition to the Central Plains, followed by the establishment of the Ming Dynasty, with the main characters merging into the great unification movement. This plot will cost at least 200 million."

"Then they conquered Dadu, achieving an unprecedented conquest of the north from the south, marking the arrival of the unification. More than four hundred years had passed since the Later Jin ceded the Sixteen Prefectures of Yan and Yun, and the northern lands, long steeped in barbarian customs, began to restore the Han Chinese attire."

"This plot point will gross at least 300 million. I'll use a long take to make it both cohesive and grand. Together, the two plot points will bring in 500 million at the box office."

"Then the Embroidered Uniform Guard was established, dressed in flying fish robes, showcasing the achievements of restoring Chinese clothing. If the film captures that feeling, it could be worth 200 million."

The leader in charge of the content raised a question: "The Embroidered Uniform Guard should be around 1380. If we start from Zhu Yuanzhang's Red Turban Army, that spans 20 years, and the age range of the main characters is a bit too large."

Han Sanping's secretary added that he had also done his research: "The Embroidered Uniform Guard should have been established in 1382, and the story begins at the end of the Yuan Dynasty, which is 1355, almost thirty years ago."

Shen Shandeng was well-prepared and found it no challenge: "We can use a dramatic approach, bringing it forward ten years."

"The main characters' growth storyline costs 3 million, the establishment of the Ming Dynasty costs 2 million, the conquest of Dadu, the restoration of Chinese clothing and customs, and the establishment of the Embroidered Uniform Guard all have emotional points. Wow, when you calculate it, one billion is not enough!"

"This doesn't even include 'Ode to the Ming Dynasty.' When the time comes, we'll remake an even better version and put it at the end, which will give the audience goosebumps."

"The song blends with the climax of the plot, allowing the audience to release all their emotions."

Shen Shandeng became more and more confident as he spoke.

It doesn't matter whether others believe it or not, he believed it.

"One billion? I don't think that's difficult at all! Showing just one-tenth, no, one-hundredth, of the historical significance and achievements of the Ming Dynasty—just a tiny fraction of its glorious and confident spirit—is enough! More than enough!"

"From the Eight-Nation Alliance, when the West dominated the East, to the defeat on the Korean Peninsula, how many years have passed? Fifty years. Even excluding the defeat on the Korean Peninsula, it has only been a century since then."

"The Ming Dynasty dominated for over two hundred years, how glorious it was! One point is enough!"

Shen Shandeng became more and more excited as he spoke!

Our ancestors were amazing!

Zhou Qifeng was impressed; he felt that his senior brother was too good at bluffing.

In other words, the Spring Festival Gala hasn't arrived yet. If you've already watched this year's Gala, you'll be more familiar with it.

The skit "Planning" performed by Zhao Benshan and Song Dandan features the line "Fighting rooster, the fighter jet among roosters!", where chicken meat costs two thousand per bite, chicken heart four thousand, and chicken liver six thousand.

Shen Shandeng uses this kind of addition and subtraction. One plot point costs at least 200 million, and if you add more and more, you'll reach 1 billion.

Han Sanping's secretary questioned, "We only have 3000 screens now, that's impossible."

Shen Shandeng said directly, "That's looking at the problem statically. Our film industry, under the leadership of the factory director, is thriving."

Han Sanping smiled without saying a word.

Everyone was speechless.

Shen Shandeng continued, "The policies are good. Now, non-public capital is allowed to enter the cultural industry, and private cinema chains such as Wanda Cinemas are developing."

"In 2002, we carried out cinema chain reforms, establishing 11 inter-provincial cinema chains and 19 intra-provincial cinema chains. A total of 35 cinema chains were registered nationwide, with 1024 cinemas and 1843 screens joining the chains."

"In 04, there were 1188 cinemas nationwide, with the number of screens increasing to 2396. In 05, there were adjustments, with more than 2600 screens. Last year, the number of screens exceeded 3000."

“今年就是3500，明年08年4000，09年4500。”

“A big production like ‘Brotherhood of Blades II: The Sun and Moon Reborn’ takes at least three or four years from project initiation to release, and at the fastest, it will be released in 10 years.”

“Development is not mechanical or linear; it is very likely that quantitative changes will lead to qualitative changes. In 10 years, there is a high probability that there will be more than 6000 screens.”

"By then, the number of screens and the scale of cinemas will be double what they are now. Judging from the performance of Titanic back then, our market potential has not been fully realized."

"If 'Curse of the Golden Flower' were of the quality of a large ship, doubling its value wouldn't be a problem. The quality of 'Brotherhood of Blades II: The Return of the Sun' would definitely be half that of a large ship."

"If the box office of 'Curse of the Golden Flower' doubles, it will be 6 million yuan. If the scale of the theaters doubles, and then doubles again, it will be 12 billion yuan."

"A billion is not difficult."

Shen Shandeng presented data directly, with reasoned arguments and evidence, which was convincing.

(End of this chapter)